


Nothing Like This

by AnonymousSpacePrince



Category: Check Please! (Webcomic)
Genre: Aquariums, Double Dating, F/M, Falling In Love, Fluff, Getting Together, Light Angst, M/M, Slow Burn
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-03-14
Updated: 2017-03-14
Packaged: 2018-10-04 09:42:43
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 13,245
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10273991
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AnonymousSpacePrince/pseuds/AnonymousSpacePrince
Summary: The professor has resumed her lecture by the time the girl slides into the seat beside Derek, but he's not paying much attention anymore. The girl beside him smiles again and offers a formal hand. "Hey," she says softly as Derek shakes her hand. "I'm Sierra."Sierra is the kind of girl Derek always imagined being with. She's chill, smart, and beautiful, and she has no trouble keeping up with his friends. She's into literature but also gets hockey, and her smile could cause a captain to beach his ship. She's everything he's ever wanted, but reality often doesn't stand up against imagination.While Derek tries to love Sierra the way he wants to, Dex becomes his favourite person to be around, due in part to the fact that Dex is the only member of SMH less invested in Derek's relationship than Derek himself.





	

**Author's Note:**

> This is, without contest, the longest thing I've ever written and posted. This took a long time, but I'm extremely proud of it. I hope you all enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it. Comments and kudos would mean the world to me.
> 
> I made two playlists specifically to be listened to while reading this. Obviously, they're not required, but they really add to the experience, in my opinion. Depending on how fast you read or how many times you get distracted, they may or may not line up perfectly with the length of the story. If not, it's not the end of the world. If you have Spotify premium, definitely listen in order, but it's just fine on shuffle, too.
> 
> Playlist one (start immediately): https://open.spotify.com/user/anonymousspaceprince/playlist/6SUWIHjixuOHSwriDjLEUQ
> 
> Playlist two (start at the ♡): https://open.spotify.com/user/anonymousspaceprince/playlist/0Z39LGutJAvNgIlum8bSBC

    On a regular Wednesday afternoon, Derek is sitting in his English class. He's listening intently to his professor as she lectures about the influence of classical literature in modern society. Listening intently, that is, until the door pushes open and a girl walks in. Her hair is long and straight, black as the feathers of a raven, and she tosses it over one shoulder as she approaches the professor.  
  
    Derek's sitting close enough to hear her voice when she apologizes and explains that she just transferred classes. Close enough to hear that her voice is soft and lilting, but full of confidence. He's close enough to hear the professor thank her for being brief. Close enough to hear her say, "now, go on and take a seat. Anywhere you like, but if you wanna catch up on what you've not been here for, sit by Derek." She points a finger at Derek, drawing an invisible line between them. "He's the only one who pays real attention in here," the professor adds with a laugh.  
  
    The girl, who Nursey now sees has a small stud in the side of her nose, laughs lightly along and then smiles at Derek as she makes her way to him.  
  
    The professor has resumed her lecture by the time the girl slides into the seat beside Derek, but he's not paying much attention anymore. The girl beside him smiles again and offers a formal hand. "Hey," she says softly as Derek shakes her hand. "I'm Sierra."  
  
    "Derek," he tells her.  
  
    Sierra. Her nails are bright red, but they they fit modestly with her loose beige blouse and tight, ripped-at-the-knee blue jeans. Up close, he can see that she has a light dusting of freckles that almost match her shirt. She doesn't cover them with concealer. She smiles at him again.  
  
    "Think you'd be willing to catch me up after class?"  
  
    "Yeah, absolutely," Derek says easily. "Let's talk after."  
  
    "Cool," Sierra says. She goes about setting up her laptop, and Derek's gaze only lingers long enough to for it to not be weird before he puts his attention back on the lecture.  
  
  
    After class ends, Derek stands up and waits for Sierra to finish putting up her laptop. She looks up and smiles at him before getting to her feet. Derek really likes her smile. "Thanks for waiting. That was a hell of a lecture, huh?" She asks, letting Derek lead the way out of the room.  
  
    "It was interesting." He says the word 'interesting' the way it's intended, not the way Lardo says it when something happens that she finds suspicious.  
  
    "You thought?" Sierra asks as they leave the building and head towards Lake Quad. "I thought it was pretty fascinating, but I kind of got lost towards the end of the lecture. Sometimes I have a hard time following words for too long." Sierra admits this without hesitation, like she's not worried about who gets to keep little pieces of her. Like she's not worried what anyone else might think.  
  
    "I can understand that. Professor Adams tends to delve a little bit into personal opinion and get really into it. It's one of the things I like about her, though," Derek says. It's almost an offering. Sierra offered a piece of herself, and he returned the favour. Admittedly, to a smaller extent, but still.  
  
    "It's cool, definitely, but it'll take some getting used to." Sierra reaches with one hand into her computer bag that's hanging on her hip, and retrieves a pair of aviator sunglasses with silver rims. She slides them on. "Sorry, I know these make me look totally unreadable," she says, "but the sun tends to make my contacts itchy."  
  
    It's another piece of herself, Derek notices, that she offers freely. "It's chill," he says easily. "I think they look good on you, anyways."  
  
    She grins at him, all straight, white teeth. The chip in one of the top front teeth is just imperfect enough to make Sierra seem real. "Thank you!" She says. "I just got these yesterday, so I haven't had the chance to totally ruin the lenses yet." Sierra chuckles lightly, a soft, happy sound that comforts Nursey in a way he isn't used to.  
  
    "I'm hopeless with sunglasses," Derek says. "I either break them or lose them before they have the chance to get dirty."  
  
    "Ha! My parents raised me super organized, so I never lose anything."  
  
    "Oh man, you'd hate my dorm room," Derek says with a small laugh.  
  
    Sierra lowers her aviators over her nose to quirk an eyebrow at Derek. He laughs a little harder as she smirks.  
  
    "I'm not like, unhygienic, just super disorganized. My parents are totally minimalist, so it drove them crazy when I was living at home. I always left cabinets open and notebooks just everywhere."  
  
    Sierra laughs. "Disorganized doesn't scare me. I'd have your entire dorm room spotless, everything in its place, in like, ten minutes. Your parents would love me." She doesn't say it boastfully, somehow. Just honest, and Derek loves it.  
  
    Derek is about to say something about how his parents probably would love her- really; she's clean-cut but friendly, smart but not holier-than-thou. She's his parents' wet dream- when his phone vibrates in his pocket. "Sorry, one sec," Derek says, opening up the text from Chowder. "Oh okay, I've got to go. Sorry, my friends are requesting me for lunch."  
  
    "No worries!" Sierra assures him.  
  
    "Let's get together ASAP and I'll catch you up on what we're discussing in class, yeah?"  
  
    "Totally," Sierra says. "Would tomorrow morning work for you, or are you not a morning person?"  
  
    "I have to be, actually. I've got practice in the morning, so I can't."  
  
    "Practice?" Sierra asks, and she doesn't have to lower her glasses for Derek to know her eyebrow is raised.  
  
    "Hockey," Derek explains.  
  
    "Ohhh wow, I totally wouldn't have pegged you for a sports guy. Though, now that I think about it, you've totally got the physique for it," Sierra says. "No worries, I'll just give you my number and we can talk about it later."  
  
    "Chill," Derek agrees, handing over his phone.  
  
    Sierra makes quick work of adding her contact info, including a selfie, and then she hands Derek's phone back. "Okay, go enjoy your lunch!"  
  
    "Yeah, I will," Derek says, returning Sierra's smile. "I'll text you," he adds.  
  
    "Cool. Talk to you later, then," she says. Derek gives her one more easy grin before turning and heading towards the Haus. "And I'm totally coming to your next game!" Sierra calls after him, and Nursey can hear the smile in her voice.

  
♢

  
    Two weeks later, Nursey's in the Haus kitchen. All the guys he's close with (including Lardo) are there, snacking on Bitty's newest pies. It seems like an opportune time. "So, you guys know that girl from my English class, Sierra?"  
  
    "The one you're smitten over?" Bitty teases, poking Nursey in the ribs with the handle of a wooden spoon. "You talk about her all the time, so yes, we know."  
  
    "Chill," Nursey says, and even he's not sure if he's telling Bitty to chill, or saying it's chill that they know. "So, she and I are going out tomorrow."  
  
    " _Out_  out? Holster asks. "Like a real date?"  
  
    "As opposed to your extensive study dates?" Ransom tacks on.  
  
    "Yes, a real date," Nursey confirms. "I'm taking her to dinner."  
  
    "Oh, Nursey, I'm so happy for you!" Chowder exclaims.  
  
    "Thanks, C."  
  
    "Dinner? Kinda capital-c Cliché, isn't it?" Dex asks, full of his usual casual snark with just a hint of honest bitterness. Nursey's used to it.  
  
    "Don't worry Dexy, I'm sure someone will want to take you out someday," Nursey retorts, quick and effortless as usual. Dex just glares, so Nursey grins obnoxiously and adds, "besides, clichés are only cliché because they work."  
  
  
    That evening, just before six, Derek hears a knock on his door. _Perfect timing_ , he thinks as he finishes buttoning his shirt. Derek opens the door, and Sierra is standing there smiling. She's wearing a short but modest black dress; the spaghetti straps show off her pale, freckle-dusted shoulders. Sierra's wearing black heels to match, and her hair is pinned up in a braided bun.  
  
    Derek takes a second to make sure he remembers to breathe before he says, "you look stunning."  
  
    Sierra's cheeks slowly paint a faint pink, and Derek smiles. "Thank you!" She responds. "You don't look so bad yourself." She smiles when she says it, drawing Derek's gaze just for a second to her lips, to which she's applied a light pink gloss that makes them look shiny and soft. "Shall we?" She asks.  
  
    "We shall," Derek says, unable to keep the smile off his face.  
  
  
    The next morning, Nursey shows up to team breakfast wearing an unshakable grin. He slides in beside Chowder, across from Dex. Holster, who is beside Dex, raises his eyebrows expectantly at Nursey. "Looks like someone had a good night," he says with a leery grin. Ransom wiggles his eyebrows at Nursey.  
  
    Nursey rolls his eyes and says, "I _did_  have a good night, but not in the way you think."  
  
    "So what happened?" Chowder asks, clearly interested in the answer.  
  
    Nursey flashes Chowder a smile and says, "we went out to dinner, and it was really nice. Sierra even offered to pay."  
  
    "Did you let her?" Chowder asks, eyebrows raised.  
  
    "Nah, I invited her out, so I paid," Nursey says, then adds with a grin, "but I told her she could pay next time."  
  
    "Ooh, there's a next time?" Chowder asks excitedly.  
  
    "Yeah, we had a really good time, so we agreed to go out again soon."  
  
    "I'm so happy for you!" Chowder exclaims, giving Nursey a one-armed hug. "Oh! We should double!" He says, literally bouncing in his seat.  
  
    "Totally, C, sounds like fun."  
  
    "Yay!"  
  
    After the excitement has settled, Nursey notices that Dex has been uncharacteristically quiet since he got there. "Yo, Poindexter, still bummed that nobody's taking you out, or what?" Nursey asks teasingly, nudging Dex's shin with his foot under the table.  
  
    He's half-expecting a sharp kick in return, but Dex just flips him off. "Oh yeah, Nurse, my heart is just _aching_  because no one will take me out on a fucking dinner date," he says coolly, every word dripping sarcasm.  
  
    Nursey smirks amusedly at him.  
  
    "Oh no, really," Dex says, schooling his face into a mock-sincere expression. "I'll _die_  if I don't get to sit in a stuffy restaurant with someone soon and make awkward small talk for an hour."  
  
    "Ha, funny, Dex, but I think it'd take more than a dinner date to get that stick out of your ass," Nursey responds easily, laughing when an angry blush spreads across Dex's cheeks.

  
♢

  
    Two weeks and four more dates later, Nursey's hanging out in the kitchen with Bitty and the other frogs. He's carefully keeping his distance while Chowder and Dex help Bitty bake.  
  
    When Chowder finishes his story about Farmer, Bitty asks, "so Nursey, what's going on with Sierra?"  
  
    "Yeah, Nursey, you haven't said much about her since your date a few weeks ago," Chowder says.  
  
    "Oh, uh, yeah," Nursey says, feeling anxious strings pulling tight in his chest, despite the fact that Sierra's not even _there_. Even Dex turns to look when Nursey doesn't say anything more right away. "Yeah, so, the thing is: I think I'm gonna ask her to be my girlfriend. Officially."  
  
    Dex turns back to the pie filling he was working on mixing, while Bitty and Chowder beam at Nursey. "Oh, honey, that's great!"  
  
    "'Swawesome!" Chowder agrees.  
  
    "I'm actually pretty nervous about it," Nursey admits.  
  
    Bitty's back to working a pie crust into the bottom of a tin, but the presence of his voice makes it clear that Nursey's still got his attention. "If she likes you as much as I think she does, you've got nothing to be nervous about."  
  
     "Yeah, I'm pretty sure she's going to say yes, but it still makes me nervous? It's probably just because I haven't been in a relationship in a while. Like, I had a girlfriend for a few months in tenth grade, and then I had a kinda serious boyfriend senior year, but other than that, I haven't really done relationships, so."  
  
    "Huh, really? I totally would've had you pegged for the kind of person who'd propose in high school," Dex teases.  
  
    Nursey sees his chance, and goes for it. "Yeah, I did," he says, making sure he sounds kind of distant. When Chowder whips his head around and looks at Nursey all surprised, Nursey gives him a small smirk and a shake of the head. "Yeah, that's why he broke up with me. Called me crazy for taking it so seriously when we were so young."  
  
    Dex looks at him guiltily, eyes full of regret. "Sorry, Nurse, I didn't mean-"  
  
    Nursey bursts out laughing, and Chowder starts laughing too. " _Chill_ , Poindexter, I'm just fucking with you. Man, you should've seen your face."  
  
    "You're the worst," Dex says in his I-really-wanna-hit-you-right-now voice, and throws a strawberry at Nursey's head. Nursey catches it when it bounces off of him and pops it into his mouth.  
  
    "Thanks," he says, grinning at Dex with slightly red teeth.  
  
    "You're so _not_ welcome."  
  
    "So, if things are starting to get serious, do we get to meet this girl soon?" Bitty asks.  
  
    "I guess I've got to subject her to the team sooner or later," Nursey says with a chuckle. This time, he gets a blueberry thrown at him by Chowder, and he catches and eats it too. "C'mon C, that doesn't include you two! Yeah, _two_ , you heard me, Dex. You're definitely included in the part of the team I don't wanna subject her to."  
  
    "Whatever, I don't wanna meet your dumb girlfriend anyway," Dex says, tossing another strawberry at Nursey.  
  
    Nursey rolls his eyes and takes a bite of the strawberry before throwing the rest back at Dex. "Fine, you're missing out."

  
♢

  
    Later that week, Derek decides that it is time to introduce Sierra to the team.  
  
    "Are you sure you're ready? Most of them are really big and loud. And the only ones that aren't especially big and loud will fuss over you like crazy."  
  
    Sierra laughs, laying a hand on Derek's arm. "Derek, you know I have three older brothers. I can handle boys, seriously. Besides! They're your friends, and I absolutely want to get to know them!"  
  
    "You're the best, you know that?" Derek asks, and pecks Sierra's cheek.  
  
    "I do know that," she responds teasingly.  
  
    "Okay, let's do this," Derek says. He takes Sierra's hand in one of his, and pushes open the Haus door with the other.  
  
    The first thing they see, upon walking into the living room, is Lardo sitting on Chowder's chest and holding his phone up in the air, struggling to type out a message while Chowder tries to stop her. They're both laughing, and Chowder is yelling, "no!" and "stop!" intermittently.  
  
    "Lards, what are you doing?" Nursey asks, laughing lightly.  
  
    "Oh hey Nurse, I'm just texting Farmer," Lardo says casually, as if she isn't literally sitting on Chowder to hold him down.  
  
    "She's trying to impersonate me and ask for inappropriate pictures!" Chowder cries forlornly.  
  
    "You know? This isn't even surprising to me. You two wanna take a pause and say hi to Sierra?"  
  
    This distracts Chowder, who looks over excitedly, just long enough for Lardo to finish typing. She yells, "sent!" victoriously, and then climbs off Chowder and tosses his phone back.  
  
    "What?! Lardo, I can't believe you!" Chowder exclaims, looking panicked at his phone.  
  
    "I did you a favour, bro," Lardo says calmly, and then walks over to Nursey and Sierra. "Hey, nice to meet you," she says, offering a hand and to Sierra.  
  
    "Yeah, you too!" Sierra says, shaking Lardo's hand. "Uh, should I call you Lardo, too? Or is that just a team thing?"  
  
    Lardo cracks a smile and says, "you'll fit right in if you stick to nicknames, trust me."  
  
    "Cool, okay."  
  
    "Yo, C, perform damage control later, yeah? You've been dying to meet Sierra," Nursey says.  
  
    "Sorry!" Chowder responds, shooting a gentle glare at Lardo. He pockets his phone and rushes over, pulling Sierra into a hug that doesn't look too bone-crushing. "Hey," he says when he pulls away. "Sorry you had to see that! I'm Chowder."  
  
    Sierra's grinning at him. "Sierra," she introduces.  
  
    "You're even prettier than Nursey said," Chowder tells her. "Your eyes are so beautiful!"  
  
    "Oh my gosh, thank you!" Sierra says, and Nursey smiles at the pretty blush that spreads across her cheeks. "You're totally the ray of sunshine that Derek made you sound like."  
  
    Chowder grins blindingly at that, passing it from Sierra to Nursey.  
  
    "Derek Nurse!" Bitty calls. "You better bring that lovely girlfriend of yours into this kitchen this instant!"  
  
    Nursey raises his eyebrows amusedly and guides Sierra towards the kitchen. Chowder and Lardo come along, and fall into chairs at the kitchen table, where Dex is already sitting. Bitty dusts flour off of his hands and offers one to Sierra.  
  
    She shakes his hand, beaming at him.  
  
    "Sierra, this is Bitty," Nursey introduces. "He's the one who's super talented not only on the ice, but in the kitchen too."  
  
    "Of course! I remember; Derek talks about your pies all the time. I hope I'll get to try one sometime."  
  
    "I've got a batch of mini-pies about to come out of the oven, if you stick around for a few minutes," Bitty tells her. "Do you like apple?"  
  
    "It's my favourite! Well, second only to raspberry rhubarb."  
  
    Bitty's face lights up in delight.  
  
    "Bits, Sierra's mom is a pastry chef."  
  
    "How wonderful! Derek, you better hold onto this girl," Bitty says, giving Nursey a look and Sierra a smile. "Now, I've got to finish up with these cookies, y'all go on over and get acquainted with Dex."  
  
    Nursey knows better than to second guess Bitty, so he does as advised. He and Sierra make their way over to the table, where Dex, Chowder, and Lardo are discussing dick pics. "You guys are lucky Shitty isn't here, he'd be ranting," Nursey says. He sits down in the last chair and pulls Sierra down into his lap, wrapping his arms snugly around her waist from behind.  
  
    "Oh man, Shits and I were just talking about it the other day," Lardo says. "He had a lot to say about unsolicited dick pics."  
  
    "I can imagine it clearly," Nursey says with a laugh. "So, Sierra, this is Dex. He's my defense partner."  
  
    " _And_  they're friends, but they don't always act like it," Chowder adds.  
  
    "Frenemies," Lardo says.  
  
    "Oh yeah, I've heard plenty about you, Dex," Sierra says with a grin. "Nice freckles, man."  
  
    "Thanks? You too," he says, sounding only minimally awkward.  
  
    Sierra offers her fist, and Dex raises his eyebrow and bumps it with his own. She grins at him until he cracks a returning smile. The small part of Nursey that had worried Dex would actually be a dick to Sierra finally settles.  
  
    He's in the middle of appreciating how well Sierra fits in with his group when Chowder's phone pings. Sierra has joined the conversation about dick pics and how uncool unsolicited ones are, so nobody pays too much attention to Chowder's phone. He slips it out of his pocket and Nursey watches his eyes go wide and his cheeks go red as he moves to make sure no one else can see the screen.  
  
    Dex just raises his eyebrow, but everyone who saw the scene in the living room smirks at Chowder. Lardo claps him on the shoulder and says, "bro, you're welcome."

  
♢

  
    By the time it rolls around to the one month mark for Derek and Sierra's relationship, she's become an honorary SMH member. Everyone loves her. Holster and Ransom carry her on their shoulders across the quad whenever it's muddy and she's wearing nice shoes. She's become Bitty's go-to sous chef and Beyoncé gossip buddy.  
  
    Even Dex talks to her often, and he has warmth in his eyes whenever they get into a conversation. Derek couldn't be happier. Except that... he could. He's happy, like, seriously, truly happy, but something feels not quite right.  
  
    When he sees Lardo French braiding Sierra's hair, or when he sees Chowder and Sierra get deep in a discussion about the Sharks (yeah, over the past month, Chowder has made a serious Sharks fan out of her), Derek really can't think of anything more perfect than what he's got around him.  
  
    Whenever occasional moments of doubt hit, Derek reminds himself that he's never been in this sort of relationship. It's all new. He's not used to the feeling of perfection, and the reason it feels lackluster sometimes is probably just because he always got carried away in romanticizing the idea.  
  
  
    To celebrate their being together for a month, Derek and Sierra go out to dinner at the restaurant at which they had their first date. Like usual, Sierra picks Derek up at his dorm, because Derek doesn't have a car nor a license.  
  
    When he answers the door, Sierra is wearing a red dress with long sleeves and a cowl neck, and her lips are red to match. She's wearing knee-high, leg-hugging black boots that the dress just barely cuts off. She grins at him, and Derek leans in to kiss her chastely in greeting. Sierra giggles and reaches out to wipe a bit of her lipstick off of Derek's bottom lip.  
  
  
    An hour after the date ended, they're lying side by side in Sierra's bed, naked underneath the sheets and slowly catching their breath. "That doesn't ever get old," Derek says with a breathless laugh.  
  
    "No kidding," Sierra agrees. "Hey." Sierra turns on her side and sets a hand on Derek's chest.  
  
    "Hm?" Derek responds, covering Sierra's hand with his own.  
  
    She bites her lip until her smile pulls it loose, and then says, "I love you."  
  
    Derek's breath catches, and it worries him because the automatic feeling is more panic than joy.  
  
    "You don't have to say it back, though," Sierra says quickly. "I mean it, seriously, like, I'm not gonna be all disappointed or bitter if you don't say it right away. I know it's still pretty early, but, I love you, and I just wanted you to know that."  
  
    Derek smiles at her. "You are really the best."  
  
    Sierra grins. "I know. Do you have practice in the morning?"  
  
    "Yeah."  
  
    "Do you wanna just stay the night? I can drive you back tomorrow in plenty of time to get your gear and just drop you off at Faber," Sierra offers.  
  
    "Are you sure you'd be cool with that?" Derek asks.  
  
    "Are you kidding? Waking up a little early in exchange for sleeping beside my boyfriend all night? Hell yeah, I'm cool with it."  
  
    "Chill, thanks babe," Derek says, and leans in for a kiss that only lasts a little longer than he originally intended.

  
♢

  
    Chowder finally gets his double date a week later. They planned it via group text, and decided to go for something fun and engaging instead of stuffy. So, that's how Derek, Chowder, Sierra, and Farmer end up at the New England Aquarium in Boston.  
  
    Upon entering, the four of them collaboratively bee-line for the Shark and Ray Touch Tank.  
  
    "Whoa!" Chowder gasps. "This is sooo cool!"  
  
    "Hell yeah it is!" Farmer agrees.  
  
    "Farms, there are children here!" Derek reminds her.  
  
    "Oops, right. _Heck_  yeah it is!" She corrects, and Derek gives a solemn nod of approval. Chowder grabs Farmer's hand and pulls her right to the edge of the tank, leaving Derek and Sierra to wait for some of the crowd to dissipate.  
  
    "Caitlin's really cool, huh?" Sierra asks.  
  
    "Yeah, she's great. She's great for Chowder."  
  
    "I see that. They're really cute together." While she talks, Sierra's smiling at a young child leaning over the tank with the help of her mother. "Ooh, come on," Sierra says suddenly, pulling Derek into the spot a couple teenagers just vacated.  
  
    As soon as they're at the edge of the tank, Sierra settles onto her stomach so she can reach out and run her fingertips over the wing of a ray. "Oh, they're really soft!" She says, turning to smile at Derek.  
  
    He smiles back and settles beside her, reaching out to pet another ray that swims by. "Hey, you're right! This is awesome."  
  
    "Oh my god, look at the shark! Here it comes, are you gonna touch it?"  
  
    "Absolutely," Derek says, stretching his hand out as far as he can without falling in. As the shark swims by, Derek's fingertips brush along its side. "Whoa, weird." It keeps swimming by, and Sierra takes a leap of faith and reaches out.  
  
    "Wow!" She says. "Hey C, touch the shark!" She calls over to where Chowder and Farmer are.  
  
    "O-M-G!" Chowder calls back a moment later, and Sierra giggles.  
  
  
    After a half hour of wandering around, looking at a bunch of different fish, they make it to the third level. "Yo C, check it out," Derek says, cracking a lazy smile. "Gulf of Maine. Too bad Dex isn't here, huh?"  
  
    Chowder laughs lightly. "You should send him a picture."  
  
    "Good idea," Derek says. He pulls out his phone and snaps a picture of the Gulf of Maine sign, then sends it to Dex. They move on, looking at the animals in the tank. Sierra and Farmer stay put. It looks like Farmer is telling Sierra about some of the fish. Derek sees an orange lobster looking up at him from between two rocks, so he takes a picture and sends that to Dex too.  
  
    He gets a response a moment later, which says, _stop texting me while you're on a date, dumbass_.  
  
    Derek huffs a laugh and the smile stays while he types out a response. _blame chowder, he told me to text you the pics_.  
  
    A few seconds later, Chowder pulls out his own phone, and then holds it out for Derek to see. A text from Dex says, _tell Nurse to stop texting me while he's on a date_ , and then a second one says, _and that he's a dumbass_.  
  
    Derek bursts out laughing.  
  
    Once Sierra and Farmer catch up, the four of them walk over to the Edge of the Sea Touch Tank. It's much less crowded than the shark and ray tank downstairs, so they group up against the edge of the tank to look at the animals.  
  
    Farmer picks up what looks like a big rock with a tail, and flips it upside down to reveal a bunch of little legs. Chowder looks stressed out until she starts explaining. "This is a Horseshoe Crab. They're really cool, actually. They have nine eyes- you'd probably just be confused if I tried to explain them all- and their mouth is between their legs."  
  
    "Uh, weird," Derek says. "But cool."  
  
    "Totally cool," Chowder agrees. "But uh, could you flip the poor guy back over now, Cait?"  
  
    Farmer giggles. "No harm done, babe. They don't mind being flipped over."  
  
    A lobster makes its way gradually over and Derek reaches out to touch its back. It doesn't seem to care much, so Derek takes out his phone and snaps a picture of it. He sends it to Dex with the caption, _how could you fish for these cool little dudes? heartless_.  
  
    The response that comes in is, _would you shut up?_  

    Derek doesn't realize he's grinning until Sierra asks, "what are you smiling at?"  
  
    "Oh, I sent Dex a picture of the lobster and he's pretending he's not amused."  
  
    "Oh," Sierra says with a laugh. She takes out her phone and snaps a picture of the lobster, and then types for a minute. Derek raises his eyebrow, so Sierra turns the phone around for him to see the screen. She sent Dex the picture of the lobster with, _Derek's new d-partner_.  
  
    Derek bursts out laughing, and laughs even harder when Dex sends back, _oh you can both just shut up_.

  
♢

  
    Ransom and Holster throw a kegster a couple weeks later to celebrate the team's win against Yale. Sierra's in New York visiting her youngest brother, so it's just Nursey and the guys (and Farmer) like old times. It's fun. Nursey's crazy about Sierra, but even hopeless romantics need the occasional break from romance.  
  
    Nursey gets drunk, but not wasted, and he splits a joint with Lardo halfway through the night. He's feeling really good by the time he finds Chowder and Dex talking and slings an arm around each of their shoulders. "This is nice, huh? Just us frogs like old times," Nursey says.  
  
    "Not missing your girlfriend yet, Nurse?" Dex teases, poking Nursey in the ribs. Nursey flinches away from the touch because his ribs are really ticklish, then he pokes Dex back.  
  
    "Nah, I've got all I need right here," Nursey says, losing the 'right now' that was supposed to fit somewhere in that sentence.  
  
    "You know what I need? A refill," Chowder says. He carefully extricates himself from under Nursey's arm and heads toward the kitchen.  
  
    Dex calls, "me too!" after him, but he's pretty sure it gets lost in the music, so he takes Nursey's cup and drinks from it.  
  
    "Oh yeah, help yourself," Nursey says sarcastically.  
  
    Dex shrugs. "Consider it your fee for using me as an armrest."  
  
  
    Around two in the morning, the party has slowed and settled. Two thirds of the guests have either gone home to sleep off their hangovers or have sex with strangers, or passed out in random corners of the Haus to be bullied out in the morning.  
  
    Of the one third left, most everyone is doing their own thing. Chowder retired to his room a while ago- Nursey's not quite sure which kind of 'sleep with' he meant when he said he was going to sleep with Farmer, but he's pretty sure he meant both- so Lardo invited Dex and Nursey into her room to smoke a bowl and avoid schwasted sorority girls.  
  
    The bowl only has a couple hits left and Lardo's eyelids start getting heavy, so she pushes Dex and Nursey to the floor and climbs under the covers of her bed. "You guys can stay in here if you keep it down and promise not to throw up."  
  
    "Promise," Dex says.  
  
    "Thanks, Lards," Nursey says.  
  
    Lardo salutes them, and then puts in earbuds, starts a playlist, and settles into bed facing the wall.  
  
    "I call the beanbag," Nursey says, jumping into it before Dex can protest.  
  
    Dex scoffs and says, "you can share the beanbag." He manhandles Nursey over enough to collapse down beside him, and Nursey just laughs quietly.  
  
    "Whatever, man."  
  
    Nursey loves Dex when he's high. He's so chill and agreeable. Dex takes the bowl and lighter from Nursey and takes a slow hit off it. He hands the bowl back to Nursey before exhaling. "Can you blow O's?" Dex asks.  
  
    "Huh?" Nursey stares at him blankly.  
  
    Dex laughs. "You know, smoke rings."  
  
    "Oh. No, I can't. Can you?"  
  
    "Yeah, my grandpa taught me," Dex says, then laughs at the look Nursey gives him. "He taught me with cigars when I was sixteen, after I got my first job. My grandpa has a really old-timey mindset, you know? He used to tell me, 'if a kid's old enough to make his own money, he's old enough to smoke, drink, cuss, and fuck'," Dex says, and just laughs harder when Nursey doesn't stop looking shocked. "What?"  
  
    "I'm just trying to imagine my grandpa even _saying_ the word 'fuck,' and, nope, can't do it," Nursey says.  
  
    "Yeah, my grandpa is interesting for sure," Dex says. "He says shit like that, but also, like, voted for Obama, and is really passionately supportive of gay rights."  
  
    "Wild."  
  
    "Yeah, no kidding. Like, any time my mom ever said anything that sounded half homophobic around him, he'd totally get on her case, like, 'no daughter of mine is going to be hateful towards anyone for something they can't control!' He's great, honestly."  
  
    Nursey smiles because Dex is smiling. It's infectious. "He sounds great."  
  
    "Man, if you don't hit that bowl, I will."  
  
    "Yeah, here, I'm good," Nursey says, giving the bowl back to Dex.  
  
    "You sure?"  
  
    "Yeah, man, this is my second time smoking tonight, remember?"  
  
    "Right," Dex says, and takes the last hit off the bowl. They sit in silence for a while, until Dex speaks again. "Yeah, I'm pretty thankful for my grandpa."  
  
    "Why's that?" Nursey asks.  
  
    Dex looks seriously at him. "Can I tell you something?"  
  
    "Of course," Nursey says.  
  
    "Okay. It's not really a secret? Like, I'm not necessarily trying to hide it, but I haven't really told anyone, except Chowder, and Bitty, so like-"  
  
    "You're rambling," Nursey says. "What's up?"  
  
    "Oh, well, I'm, uh, gay," Dex finally says.  
  
    Huh. Nursey wasn't expecting that. "Oh okay. That's cool man, thanks for telling me," Nursey says with a smile. Dex smiles back.  
  
    "Yeah. So, I'm thankful for my grandpa because like, if he hadn't raised her the way he did, my mom probably wouldn't have been so accepting when I came out."  
  
    "Your grandpa sounds really great," Nursey confirms.  
  
  
    Nursey's not sure exactly when they fell asleep, but he wakes up to his phone ringing at some ridiculously early hour. Dex is asleep right beside him, their sides pressed together, and Dex's head is sort of tucked into the crook of Nursey's shoulder.  
  
    By the time he's actually coherent enough to realize why he's awake, Nursey's phone has stopped ringing. He gets up, careful not to wake Dex, and goes out into the hall to check his phone. It was Sierra, so he calls her back right away.  
  
    "Derek?" She answers, sounding tired and a little upset.  
  
    "Hey baby, are you okay?"  
  
    "Yeah, yeah, I'm alright," she says, voice slightly tinny from the phone. "Sorry for calling so early. My brother got into a car accident on the way to work-"  
  
    "Oh shit, is he okay?"  
  
    "Yes, he's okay, just broke his wrist, but we're in the hospital now. I just wanted to let you know that I'm not gonna be back tomorrow. I'm gonna stay a few extra days to make sure everything's okay. The doctor said he should be fine, but there might be a delayed trauma effect, like a head injury that doesn't present right away? So since Ryan lives alone I'm just gonna stay a few more days to make sure nothing bad happens."  
  
    "Okay babe, no problem. Thanks for letting me know."  
  
    "Of course. Alright, go on back to sleep sweetie, I'll text you later."  
  
    "Okay, bye."  
  
    "Bye," Sierra says, and then hangs up.  
  
    Nursey goes back into Lardo's room as quietly as he can. "What was that about?" Dex asks sleepily.  
  
    "Sierra just called to let me know she's gonna be in New York a little while longer. Her brother got in a minor car accident, so she's just gonna stay long enough to make sure everything's okay."  
  
    "Oh, okay," Dex says. "Well come back; it's cold as fuck in here and you were keeping me warm."  
  
    Nursey snorts and settles back down in the beanbag beside Dex. He falls back asleep before he has time for a single thought.

  
♢

  
    On Derek and Sierra's two month mark, Derek surprises her at her apartment with flowers. She grins when she sees them, and says, "thanks so much, babe! Happy two months!"  
  
    "Happy two months," he returns. "What do you wanna do today?"  
  
    "Unfortunately, I have to work most of the day," Sierra says with a frown. "But why don't you come over tonight and we can stay in and watch a movie?"  
  
    "Sounds good."  
  
    "Actually, you can just stay here while I'm gone, if you want. You don't have classes or practice today, right? You could invite some of the guys over. Up to you, but if you want to, I'm totally cool with it."  
  
    "Really?" Derek asks. "Could be fun, if you're really cool with it. I bet Chowder would love to come over; you know he loves your place. Dex and Bitty could come with, I'm sure Dex would love the PS4 and Bitty would end up leaving us with pie for tonight."  
  
    "Sounds great! You should get them over here after I leave, which-" Sierra looks at her watch. "-needs to be now, or I'll be late. I'm so sorry to rush out like this, but thanks for the flowers. There are a couple vases under the sink."  
  
    "Okay babe, no worries. Don't let work stress you out too much, yeah?"  
  
    "I'll try," Sierra says. She pulls Derek in for a kiss before pulling the door open. "Text the guys! I'll be home around six."  
  
    "Okay, be safe," Derek says.  
  
    Sierra smiles and pulls the door closed behind her. Derek pulls out his phone and creates a group text with Bitty, Chowder, and Dex. _yo, come over to sierra's, she gave me the place while she's at work and told me to invite u guys_ , he sends, and then, _/only you three/_.  
  
  
    Sierra gets home from work around six thirty, and just kicks off her shoes and collapses beside Derek on the couch. Dex is on his other side, and Chowder's perched in one armchair, and the two are battling it out on the PS4. Bitty's in the other armchair, looking back and forth between the TV screen and his phone. Sierra kisses Derek's cheek in greeting and he slides an arm around her shoulders, letting her settle in against his side.  
  
    "Who's winning?" She asks.  
  
    "Dex is kicking Chowder's ass for the third time in a row," Derek tells her.  
  
    "Damn right," Dex confirms, while Chowder scoffs.  
  
    "C'mon C, I'm sure you'll beat Dex in no time if you keep practicing," Sierra encourages. Chowder grins, and then does something in the game that makes Dex groan disdainfully. "Hey baby, can I talk to you privately for a minute?" Sierra asks Derek.  
  
    "Of course," he says, and stands up to follow her to the kitchen. "What's up?" Derek asks once the door closes.  
  
    "Are you set on something romantic tonight?" Sierra asks.  
  
    "Not particularly, why?"  
  
    "Work was especially tough today, and I think I'd have a better time just hanging out, the four of us, if you're cool with that."  
  
    "Yeah, absolutely," Derek says, shooting her a smile. "Nothing better than hanging out with my best friends and my girlfriend."  
  
    "You're the best, baby," Sierra says.  
  
    Derek cracks a grin. "I know."  
  
  
    In the morning, Derek wakes up beside Sierra in her bed. He feels like he woke up during a dream, but the more he tries to chase it, the more it fades. He gets the sense there was something off about the dream, but there's no use worrying about something he can't even control. Derek stares at the ceiling and smiles, recalling the memories from the night before.  
  
    They'd stayed up until the middle of the night, playing video games, laughing, debating dinosaurs at one point, NHL teams at another. They'd spent a good half hour talking shit about the Blackhawks. Derek laughs quietly to himself. It had been a really good night.  
  
    Sierra's still fast asleep, so Derek gets up quietly and makes his way to the living room. Bitty is sitting up on the couch, apparently also just waking up. "Morning, Bits," Nursey greets.  
  
    "Good mornin', Nursey," Bitty responds. Nursey smiles at the way Bitty's accent is stronger in the morning. "You sure look happy."  
  
    "Yeah, I woke up in a great mood," Nursey says. "Last night was really fun."  
  
    "It was," Bitty agrees. "Cards Against Humanity sure was something." Oh yeah, they played Cards Against Humanity for a while too.  
  
    "No shit," Nursey agrees. "Come on in the kitchen, I'm gonna brew some coffee."  
  
    "Coffee sounds wonderful," Bitty says, using what looks like sheer willpower to stand up and follow Nursey to the kitchen.  
  
    "The couch wasn't too rough to sleep on, was it?" Nursey asks as he fills up the coffee maker.  
  
    "Are you kidding? That thing's comfier than the dorm beds at school. I won't even be able to look at that biohazard y'all call a couch in the Haus anymore." Bitty wrinkles his nose at the thought of the green couch, and Nursey laughs.  
  
    "Alright, coffee will be ready in a minute. Mugs in there," Nursey says, and points to a cabinet, "cream in the fridge and sugar in the pantry. I'm gonna go get Dex and Chowder up."  
  
    "Good luck, honey," Bitty says with a laugh.  
  
    Nursey makes his way to the guest room and pushes the door open quietly. An instant grin spreads across his face at the sight before him. Dex is fast asleep on his back, and Chowder is stretched out on his stomach diagonally, with his feet by the corner of the bed, and his head on Dex's chest. One of Dex's arms is loosely wrapped around Chowder's shoulders, and the other is hanging off the bed.  
  
    Nursey pulls out his phone and snaps a few pictures, because it's cute (and because he never knows when he might need to blackmail Dex). He sneaks back out to the kitchen and says, "Bits, you've gotta see this."  
  
    Bitty follows him back to the bedroom and immediately grins at the sleeping frogs. "Oh goodness, that's adorable." Bitty takes a picture of them himself, and whispers, "oh, I so wanna Tweet this, but my moral compass says no."  
  
    "I'm gonna show Farmer, at least," Nursey says, and then opens his phone and sends a couple of the pictures to her.  
  
    "Should we wake them up?" Bitty asks.  
  
    "Yeah, they have a CompSci class in a couple hours," Nursey says. "Yo, hey, rise and shine, dorks." Nursey ruffles their hair until Dex smacks him, then he laughs and backs up to let them wake up.  
  
    "Jesus, Chowder, you're heavier than you look," Dex says, shoving Chowder gently off of him. Chowder rolls and buries his face in the pillow, whining about wanting more sleep. Dex raises his eyebrows at Nursey, then turns the look on Bitty. "What's up with the welcoming committee?"  
  
    "Y'all were cute, all cuddled up."  
  
    "Yeah, Chowder's aggressively cuddly."  
  
    "Unstoppable force versus immovable object," Nursey snickers. It earns him a light but pointed kick to the thigh. "Hey C, there's coffee."  
  
    Chowder perks up instantly and disappears to the kitchen, and Bitty follows to make sure half-asleep Chowder doesn't do anything fully-awake Chowder wouldn't do.  
  
    "Yo, get up, you have class soon," Nursey says, and Dex raises an eyebrow.  
  
    "Memorize my class schedule, Nurse?" Dex says with a smirk.  
  
    Nursey rolls his eyes. "Nope, I memorized Chowder's, because I actually like him," he says with a small grin.  
  
    "Uh-huh, you _love_  me," Dex says.  
  
    "Whatever helps you sleep at night," Nursey says, but they both know he really does love Dex as much as he loves all his friends. "Seriously, though, you take forever to wake up, so go drink some coffee or your CompSci teacher will exile you from class for fucking up all your coding."  
  
    "So dramatic!" Dex says, but forces himself out of bed anyway. "I'm gonna move in with your girlfriend; that's the most comfortable bed I've ever slept in."  
  
    "Yeah? You should try my bed back home," Nursey says, and he definitely hears how wrong it sounds. "When I was younger, I used to pretend to be sick sometimes just so I could stay in my bed all day, because it was so comfortable." That made it sound better, he thinks.  
  
    "That an invitation?" Dex asks with a smirk. He nudges Nursey's shoulder playfully on the way past him. Nursey wants to be mad, but he finds himself smiling instead.  
  
    Nursey follows Dex towards the kitchen, but stops when he suddenly remembers the dream he'd woken up from. In it, he'd been in bed, but instead of Sierra, it'd been Dex beside him. With an arm around him. Pressing little kisses to his shoulder and cheek. Nursey suppresses a shudder and keeps walking. He's not as weirded out as he feels like he should be, but it's just because he knows he can't control his dreams.  
  
  
        Later on, in the afternoon, Nursey goes to the Haus after English. Dex and Holster are in the living room, devouring their respective pieces of apple pie. Nursey beelines for the kitchen to get his own, and then sits on the arm of the couch beside Dex.  
  
    "Where's Sierra?" Holster asks.  
  
    "Uh, she had a thing," Nursey says around a mouthful of warm pie.  
  
    "A thing?"  
  
    "Yeah, she didn't go into specifics."  
  
    "You didn't ask?"  
  
    "Nah; I don't need to know what she's doing every second of every day," Nursey says.  
  
    "But you guys are okay, right? Nothing happened?"  
  
    Nursey rolls his eyes fondly. "No, nothing happened. She didn't tell me and I didn't ask for details because it's not really my business. I trust her; I don't need to know what she's doing at all times."  
  
    "Oh okay, good for you, bro." Holster finishes the last of his pie in one bite and then stands up. "I've gotta meet Rans at Annie's; I'll see you guys later."  
  
    "Chill, seeya," Nursey says.  
  
    "Have fun," Dex adds.  
  
    "Move over," Nursey says, nudging Dex's thigh with his foot.  
  
    "Fuck you, I'm comfortable."  
  
    "Don't be difficult, Poindexter."  
  
    "Just sit in Holster's spot."  
  
    "See, I would, but that would require getting up and walking around you, and that's just effort I'm not willing to exert right now."  
  
    Dex rolls his eyes so hard Nursey worries he's gonna blind himself. "That's pathetic."  
  
    "Your face is pathetic!"  
  
    "I know," Dex says with another roll of his eyes.  
  
    "Nah, your face is 'swawesome," Nursey says, patting Dex's cheek and then shoving him towards the other end of the couch. Dex finally gives in and slides over, and Nursey sinks off the arm and into the spot Dex left. "You're right, it is comfortable here," Nursey says with a grin.  
  
    "You're an asshole," Dex says, and steals a bite of Nursey's pie with his fork.  
  
    "Hey!" Nursey exclaims.  
  
    "You don't deserve this pie."  
  
    Nursey steals a bite of Dex's pie back, and when Dex gives him a murderous stare, he just grins ostentatiously. "Now we're even."   

    "Next time, I'm just gonna eat all the pie before you get here."  
  
    "You wouldn't dare."  
  
    "Wanna bet?"  
  
    "I _bet_  I'll kill you if you deprive me of Bitty's pie."  
  
    "Better eat it fast, then," Dex taunts, moving his fork menacingly towards Nursey's pie. Nursey glares and pulls his plate away, finishes the pie in three bites. Dex just laughs and works on his own pie.  
  
    "What do you think of Sierra?" Nursey asks suddenly.  
  
    "What do you mean?" Dex asks.  
  
    "Like, do you like her? Do you think she's good for me?"  
  
    "Since when do you care about my opinion?" Dex teases lightly. "Uh, I like her, you know I do, but I think it only really matters that you like her, right?"  
  
    Nursey smiles. "Yeah, thanks for that."  
  
    "Why?"  
  
    "Everyone else is just like, really invested. It's great that everyone likes her so much, obviously, but it's my relationship, not theirs. It kinda feels like a lot of unnecessary pressure."  
  
    "I can understand that," Dex says. "But hey, no pressure here. It only matters to me that you're happy."  
  
    "Aww Dexy, you do care!" Nursey exclaims, and throws his arms dramatically around Dex's shoulders.  
  
    "Ugh, I regretted that before I even said it. Get off me."  
  
    "But you _care_ about me!" Nursey cries, pressing his cheek against Dex's obnoxiously.  
  
    "Of course I care about you, idiot, but if you don't let me go I'm gonna push you onto the floor."  
  
    Nursey snickers and lets Dex push him away. As soon as Dex seems to relax again, Nursey yells, "Bitty, did you hear that?! Dex _cares_ about me!"  
  
    He barely hears Bitty's unamused call back of "that's great, Nursey" over the sound of his own laughter as Dex shoves him off the couch.  
  
    "I think I love her," Nursey says. He doesn't miss the way Dex stills, but he also doesn't question it.  
  
    "Oh yeah?" Dex asks after a second.  
  
    "Yeah." Nursey gets up and sits back on the couch, pulls his knees up to his chest and wraps his arms around his legs. "I mean, I do love her, I just... I'm not sure if I'm in love with her."  
  
    "Sometimes it takes time," Dex says.  
  
    "Yeah," Nursey agrees.

  
♢

  
    It's a Saturday night, and Sierra's hanging out at the Haus with Derek and the guys (including Lardo). Sierra is in the middle of destroying Holster at Mario Kart when Dex lands a punch on Nursey's upper arm so hard he bumps into Sierra.  
  
    Sierra hadn't been paying attention to what they were arguing about, but she turns around in time to see Nursey return the punch just as hard. Dex says, "ow, motherfucker!" but they're both laughing, so Sierra doesn't know what to think.  
  
    "Way too hard, bro," Nursey says, rubbing his arm where Dex punched him.  
  
    "That's what she said," Lardo says.  
  
    "Are you okay, babe?" Sierra says, and Derek flashes a smile that looks a little thin.  
  
    "I'm fine. I've taken harder hits from my baby cousins," Nursey chirps, and Dex shoves him. "Alright, truce! You want another beer?"  
  
    "Sure," Dex says.  
  
    Sierra follows Derek when he heads to the kitchen. She touches two fingers to the spot Dex punched, and Derek flinches away a little. "Are you sure you're okay?" She asks. "Dex punched you pretty hard."  
  
    "Babe, that's nothing. You know I take hits much worse on the ice. Dex and I'll have matching bruises," Derek says with a laugh.  
  
    "Aw, I don't want you to be all bruised up."  
  
    "Why are you so stuck on it, Sierra?" Derek asks, softening his words in time.  
  
    She looks a little surprised anyway. "I just care, is all."  
  
    "I know, and I love that you do, but it'd be nice if you'd just care a little less."  
  
    Sierra looks taken aback. "What does that mean?"  
  
    "I'm just feeling a little smothered! I'm not worried about it, so why are you?"  
  
    "Wow, okay. I guess I shouldn't be worried about it, huh?"  
  
    "No, you shouldn't. I hit Dex as hard as he hit me, and it was all in good fun. If you wanna fucking worry about someone, go ask Dex if he's okay, because I already told you I am."  
  
    Sierra's look turns cold. "Maybe I should just go."  
  
    "Maybe you should!"  
  
    "I'll see you later, then," Sierra says. She turns on her heels and walks out. Derek hears the front door slam. He's not looking forward to the admonishment he's gonna receive from his friends.  
  
    Nursey walks into the living room long enough to hand Dex his beer, receiving a concerned look in return, and then heads upstairs and climbs out to the reading room.  
  
    He uncaps his beer and looks up at the sky, watching the lights of a passing plane move across the sky. It's only a moment later that someone climbs out the window behind him. Nursey's only a little disappointed that it's Chowder. A part of him hoped it was Dex. Their friendship has been great lately, and Dex is the only one that isn't too attached to Sierra.  
  
    "What was that about?" Chowder asks, settling down beside Nursey.  
  
    "Do we have to talk about it?"  
  
    "No," Chowder says. "I just hope you're alright."  
  
    "Thought you'd be more worried about Sierra." Nursey feels guilty for his bitter tone, but he can't take it back now.  
  
    "I am, but _you're_  my best friend. You're more important, obviously."  
  
    Nursey smiles a little. "Thanks, C." Nursey puts an arm around Chowder's shoulders and pulls him into a side-hug.  
  
  
    The next day, Derek meets Sierra before English. "Listen, I'm sorry about last night," he says.  
  
    "No, I'm sorry. I know I tend to get over-concerned, and then I got defensive when you just wanted a little space. I shouldn't have though; that's your job," Sierra says, shooting Derek a smile.  
  
    He raises an eyebrow. "What's my job?"  
  
    "Being defensive."  
  
    "Oh!" Derek grins. "I guess we can both do better, huh?"  
  
    "I'll drink to that."  
  
    "Lemme take you to lunch after class, as a proper apology."  
  
    "I'll pay for your meal if you pay for mine," Sierra says.  
  
    Derek laughs lightly. "Sounds like a plan," he says, and kisses her sweetly.

  
♢

  
    It's not even a week later that Derek has to combat the urge to start another fight. He'd shown up to English drowsy and barely-alert and complained to Sierra about how little sleep he got the night before. She'd frowned at him, and now she's telling him that he needs to get more sleep so he doesn't get sick.  
  
     "You've gotta take care of yourself," she says, softly but surely.  
  
    "I know," he says shortly. He knows Sierra just cares, but... he doesn't need her to care like that. It's not like he's gonna drop dead because he didn't get eight hours. Derek doesn't say that out loud, because he doesn't want another argument, especially not in the middle of class.  
  
    Sierra's let it go. She's listening to whatever Professor Adams is saying, but Derek can see the concerned purse of her lips. It makes him wanna yell, and he's not even sure why. Derek just... doesn't like people worrying about him when he's not even worried. That's what it is, he realises.  
  
    Derek studies Sierra, watching as she looks from Professor Adams to the white board to her laptop, eyes flashing around in interest as she focuses on each word and concept around her. His mouth is a straight line; Sierra's fascination doesn't bring a smile to his face anymore.  
  
    It hits Derek then, more like an acorn falling from a tree above him than a train in motion, that maybe he isn't so invested in the relationship anymore.

  
♢

  
    It takes him another week to decide for sure how he's feeling. It's almost been three months that they've been together, and Derek knows for sure what to do when he realises that he's not looking forward to the milestone.  
  
    He and Sierra are walking across the quad, towards the Haus, when Derek stops. "Can we talk?" He asks.  
  
    Sierra's eyes widen a little, but she looks him in the eye and nods. "What do we need to talk about?"  
  
    "I don't think my heart's in this anymore," Derek blurts, and his heart starts pounding.  
  
    "'This', meaning...?"  
  
    "Us, this relationship. I just- look, I like you, I mean, I love you, even, but-"  
  
    "But you're not _in_  love with me," Sierra states, rather than asks. She doesn't look upset. A little surprised, for sure, but not mad, or sad.  
  
    "Yeah. I'm sorry, I don't- it's really not you, but you're smart enough to know that. I just, uh, I think there's just something missing for me here."  
  
    "It's okay, Derek. I understand. I really appreciate that you're being straight up about it instead of leading me on when you're not into it. That's all I can ask, right? It wouldn't be fair of me to try to expect you to force anything."  
  
    "No," Derek agrees. "Um, thank you, for being so understanding and, like, amazing."  
  
    "We can still be friends, right?" Sierra asks, showing hesitancy Derek's rarely ever seen from her.  
  
    "Of course, yeah. As long as it's not weird for you, I'd love to still have you in my life."  
  
    "Okay, great," Sierra says, and smiles at Derek. "For now though, I'm gonna head home. I don't wanna cause a bunch of stress at the Haus, you know?"  
  
    "Yeah, good idea. I think the guys'll take it better if I tell them on my own."  
  
    "Yeah, alright," Sierra says. "I'll see you tomorrow?"  
  
    "'Course," Derek says.  
  
    Sierra smiles, kisses his cheek, and then walks away.  
  
    It only takes a few minutes to get to the Haus, and the first thing he hears is "I thought Sierra was coming with you."  
  
    Nursey looks from Holster, who spoke, to Chowder and Dex, who are sitting on the couch looking inquisitively at him. "Yeah, uh..." Nursey scratches the back of his neck. "We broke up."  
  
    "You-" Holster says, looking speechless.  
  
    "What?!" Chowder exclaims, positively disdainful.  
  
    "Yeah, that's the reaction I was expecting. Look, it's not a big deal, but I'm gonna go up to the reading room while you guys spread the news and get all the shock out of your systems." Nursey doesn't wait for anyone to respond before he turns and heads upstairs.  
  
    This time, as he climbs out the window and settles out on the roof, Nursey's expecting Chowder to follow. It surprises him a little when Dex climbs out after him instead. "Uh, hey," Nursey says.  
  
    "Hey, sorry our friends are dumbasses," Dex says. He sits down across from Nursey instead of beside him. "Are you okay?"  
  
    Nursey's a little surprised. "Oh, yeah, I'm fine. I just didn't wanna deal with all their questions and shit yet."  
  
    "I can understand that," Dex says mildly. "But I wouldn't wait too long, they've already started speculating."  
  
    "Ugh."  
  
    "Are you sure you're okay?"  
  
    "I came up here to avoid questions, remember?" Nursey asks lightheartedly.  
  
    "I'm not trying to pry, man, you just look kinda disappointed."  
  
    On a whim, Nursey sits up and wraps his arms around Dex's shoulders.  
  
    "Oh, careful," Dex says, steadying himself before returning the hug.  
  
    "If you chirp me for this, I'll push you off the roof," Nursey warns.  
  
    Dex hugs him tighter. "If I did that, I'd deserve it."  
  
    Nursey smiles and lets himself breathe. He pulls away after a minute, sits back and relaxes. "Yeah, I'm okay. I'm relieved, really. I broke up with her. If I'm a little disappointed, it's just because I know it was the right decision."  
  
    "You're disappointed because it was the right decision?"  
  
    "Yeah, I mean, a part of me kinda hoped I'd regret it as soon as I did it. I like her, you know? I wanted things to work, but as soon as I did it, I felt so much better. I just felt like something was missing, with Sierra. It's not like anything's wrong with her, I just felt... off, I guess."  
  
    "As long as you don't regret anything, that's good, right?" Dex asks.  
  
    "Yeah, you're right. I am glad I did it, I'm just not really looking forward to trying to figure out what wasn't working." Nursey sees the look on Dex's face, and says, "William Poindexter, if you make a joke about my penis I will fucking Sparta kick you off this roof."  
  
    "Hey, why do you keep assuming I'm gonna joke about a serious situation?"  
  
    "You were thinking it!"  
  
    "Thinking and saying are two very different things!" Dex says, fighting a laugh.  
  
    Nursey rolls his eyes, but smiles. "So are 'premeditated' and 'accidental'."  
  
    "You kicking me off the roof wouldn't be accidental!"  
  
    "Good luck proving that when you're dead."  
  
    Dex widens his eyes and tries to look mock-afraid, but he ends up laughing. Nursey ends up laughing too.

  
♡

  
    Nursey's in the middle of a conversation with Chowder over breakfast, but he's mostly zoned out, watching Dex talk to Holster about the game that was on the night before. Nursey hadn't watched; he's not even sure who played, but it's obvious from the way his face is lit up that one of Dex's favourite teams won.  
  
    Nursey finds himself smiling a little. He likes seeing Dex happy. It makes him feel happy. Dex catches Nursey's eye in passing, and shoots him a personal smile, and _oh_. The flashback montage that runs through Nursey's mind is so cliché and pathetic that he almost laughs out loud.  
  
    All the comfortable one-on-one chats with Dex over the past few months, that dream he had at Sierra's that one time, how happy and chill he's been feeling around Dex for... probably longer than he realised, the hug out on the reading room. Well, shit.  
  
    Nursey takes out his phone and opens his conversation with Chowder. He types under the table: _plot twist: I have a big gay crush on dex_.  
  
    Chowder's phone pings, but he ignores it. "You should get that," Nursey says.  
  
    "But I'm talking to you; that'd be rude."  
  
    Nursey gives him a look and shows Chowder his own phone. Understanding crosses Chowder's face and he mouths 'oh!' He takes out his phone and reads the message, and he gapes at Nursey for a solid thirty seconds before responding.  
  
    _tell him!!!!!_  
  
    Nursey considers. _you think I should???_  
  
    _yeah!!!_ Chowder responds.  
  
    _should I tell him now??_  
  
      _n_ _o time like the present_ , Chowder sends. Then, _not here tho. ew._  
  
    Nursey laughs lightly and meets Chowder's eyes. Chowder nods encouragingly. Nursey takes a deep breath and stands up, walks over and leans down over Holster's shoulder. "Yo Dex, can I borrow you for a minute?"  
  
    "Sure," Dex says, and gets up without any hesitation.  
  
    "Cool," Nursey says, and leads the way out of the dining hall. Most everyone is either eating, sleeping, or in class, so the quad is pretty empty.  
  
    "What's up?" Dex asks.  
  
    "It turns out, I'm a fucking idiot," Nursey says, and Dex snickers.  
  
    "You just figured that out?" Dex chirps.  
  
    "Yes, because I'm a fucking idiot. I figured out why things didn't work with Sierra."  
  
    Dex's face goes serious. "Oh yeah?"  
  
    "Yeah, yeah, uh, she just wasn't quite right for me."  
  
    "So, where does you being an idiot fit in here?" Dex asks with a little smirk. Nursey wants to kiss it away, but he thinks he should talk first.  
  
    "I'm an idiot because it took me until like five minutes ago to realise that I have a massive crush on you."  
  
    Dex's face resembles that of people in movies right before they have a heart attack. "Seriously?" He asks.  
  
    "Very seriously," Nursey confirms.  
  
    "Fuck," Dex breathes. "Well, that's good to know, because I've been on the brink of falling in love with you for like half a year."  
  
    Okay, now Nursey feels like he's about to have a heart attack. "I think I might die if I don't kiss you like right now."  
  
    "Yeah, you definitely will, because I'll kill you."  
  
    Nursey smirks and tugs Dex close by the front of his shirt, then holds his face gently between his hands. "Oh you will, will you?"  
  
    Dex puts a hand on Nursey's side; snakes the other one up to the back of his neck. "Yeah, I will."  
  
    "No need," Nursey says, and kisses him. It's exactly the kind of kiss that Nursey's read about a million times and written off as the product of hopeless romantics with overactive imaginations. The entire world narrows to just he and Dex; Dex's lips pressing against his again and again, softly, slowly, lingering. It's effortless and natural-- they just _fit_. They part after no more than a minute, and Nursey feels warm and bubbly.  
  
    Dex's cheeks are tinged red, and they're both smiling like idiots. "Please tell me that was incredible to you as it was to me," Nursey says.  
  
    "I- yeah, I don't even have words," Dex says with a borderline giggle. It makes Nursey smile even more.  
  
    "Be my boyfriend, Will."  
  
    Dex's grin widens, little dimples showing at the corners of his mouth. His other hand slides down to Nursey's waist, making sure he stays close. "I'm not just a rebound, right?" Dex teases.  
  
    Nursey doesn't tease back. He leans in and kisses Dex again, lingering for just a second. "Never in a million years would I ever do that to you."  
  
    "Good. I'll be your boyfriend if you'll be mine."  
  
    "Deal," Nursey says. "Great, now I'm literally going to be smiling for the rest of my entire life."  
  
    And, well, if that's Nursey's biggest problem, he must have it pretty good.

  
♢

  
    "We should tell them, right?"  
  
    It's been about three weeks since Derek and Will got together, and it's been incredible. Derek hasn't felt the tiniest hint of hesitance or lack with Will. It's just been absurdly blissful and sappy and amazing (and really, _really_  hot at times), and Derek couldn't be happier.  
  
    "You think?" Will asks. They're in Derek's dorm room, laying on his bed, just cuddling. Derek has a playlist going of indie songs Will has admitted to liking, and it's kind of perfect. The kind of perfect where Derek's arm is falling asleep under Will's head, and his shin still hurts where Will accidentally kicked him twenty minutes ago. It's the kind of perfect that is real and tangible and only perfect because it's right, not because it's flawless.  
  
    Derek presses a sweet, innocent kiss to Will's neck and catches Will's hand, threading their fingers together. Will pulls their hands close and kisses Derek's knuckles. Will is every bit as sappy and romantic as Derek is, and Derek fucking loves it. So much. "Yeah," he says. "Why not?"  
  
    "No, I agree. I think we should tell them."  
  
    "Chill," Derek says, and he doesn't have to see to know Will rolled his eyes. "Who do you think will freak out the most?"  
  
    "Positively or negatively?"  
  
    "I don't think any of them will react negatively," Derek says. "Maybe pure shock, but nothing negative. Well, Bitty might react negatively if he thinks about the risk of his kitchen getting defiled."  
  
    Will laughs. "Yeah, little does he know..."  
  
    "Shh! What Bitty doesn't know won't hurt him," Derek says.  
  
    "Yeah, well, if he did know, he'd hurt us."  
  
    "Which is exactly why we are not telling him about _that_ ," Derek says.  
  
    "Speaking of _that_ ," Will starts. He sits up, straddles Derek's hips. "We don't have to go tell them right now, do we?" He asks with a smirk.  
  
    Derek bites his lip, tugs Will down until they're breathing the same air. "We've got all the time in the world."  
  
  
    Something like a couple hours later (they kind of lost track of time), Derek and Will head into the Haus together. They don't hold hands, though Derek wants to, because that'd kind of kill the point of telling everyone. In the living room, Shitty and Bitty are playing Mario Kart, and being cheered on by Lardo and Ransom and Holster, respectively.  
  
    "Hey!" Chowder exclaims as they walk in. He seems to be a neutral party, same as Jack. "Where have you guys been?"  
  
    "We were hanging out in my room," Nursey says.  
  
    "Well I'm glad you're back! We've got the whole gang back together!"  
  
    "We know. Couldn't pass up an opportunity to see everyone together again. It's been a little while, this time," Dex says.  
  
    Chowder gives them an inquisitive look, since he's the only one on the team who already knows they're together, and Dex looks to Nursey and nods. "We kinda have ulterior motives, though," Nursey says.  
  
    Bitty pauses the game and looks up, Shitty following suit. "Oh?"  
  
    All their best friends' eyes are on them. They all look open and interested. Nursey reaches for Dex's hand, laces their fingers together. They hold up their interlocked hands and grin. Nursey takes in the reactions, ranging from confused to excited.  
  
    "We're together!" Dex announces, and the uproar is positively phenomenal.

    Bitty and Jack go for happy, but polite congratulations. Shitty lets out an honest-to-God scream of joy. Lardo fist-bumps them both and says, "bros, totally 'swawesome." Nursey is 100% sure Chowder actually tears up before he hugs them. Holster and Ransom clap very passionately, and give their expletive-laced congratulations.  
  
    It's overwhelming in the best way. Nursey and Dex are both grinning, at each other and at their friends, and about the entire situation. Nursey remembers the way he felt when Sierra met everyone; it was genuinely happy, sure, but it was nothing like this.

  
♢

  
    Two afternoons after they came out to the team, Will walks Derek to his English class. They hold hands the whole way there, occasionally moving away and back towards each other like ocean waves. "Are you gonna tell Sierra?" Will asks as they approach the building.  
  
    "Yeah, why wouldn't I?" Derek asks, raising an eyebrow.  
  
    "Just wondering," Will assures him.  
  
    "There are no hard feelings between Sierra and I; I think she'll be happy for us." Not a single part of Derek doubts it, and it must show on his face, because Will looks just as relaxed as he feels.  
  
    "I'm happy as long as she doesn't try to win you back," Will says with an amused smirk.  
  
    Derek grins back. "She could try, but it wouldn't do shit."  
  
    "Damn straight," Will says, stopping outside the door of the English building.  
  
    Nursey laughs and corrects him with, "damn _gay_."  
  
    "That too," Will says. He leans in and kisses Derek before untangling their hands and nudging him towards the door. "Go to class before you're late."  
  
    "Lunch after?"  
  
    "Absolutely," Will says, and doesn't protest when Derek pulls him in for one last kiss.  
  
    Derek makes his way to class and sits down beside Sierra. "Hey, stranger," she greets with a smile.  
  
    "Hey," Derek says. "Can I tell you something?"  
  
    "Of course."  
  
    "I'm in a new relationship," Derek says, with just the tiniest hint of hesitance.  
  
    Sierra looks nothing but happy. "Derek, that's great! Who's the lucky person?"  
  
    "Actually, it's Dex," Derek says, unable to fight a small smile.  
  
    A slow grin takes over Sierra's face. "That's amazing, oh, I'm so happy for you!" She says. "When did you guys get together?"  
  
    "Three weeks ago, -ish. But we just went public a couple days ago."  
  
    "Well, congratulations! He's treating you well, I trust?"  
  
    Derek smiles easily. "He's the best. I'm _really_  happy."  
  
    "I can see that," Sierra says. "I'm really happy for you."  
  
    "I appreciate it."  
  
    "You know, I had a feeling Dex liked you," Sierra says, then giggles at Derek's surprised look. "Not like he said anything. It's just that whenever he looked at you, and he thought nobody was looking at him, he looked like you were holding the whole world in your hands." As is the norm when it comes to Will, Derek can't help his grin. "I'm just really glad things worked out this way. I'm happy for you both," Sierra says.  
  
    "I didn't even realise how I felt about him until the day we got together, honestly. I was just talking to Chowder over breakfast, and I was watching Will talking to Holster, and it just kinda hit me all of a sudden."  
  
    "Aw, that's kind of adorable. So what happened? How'd you end up getting together?"  
  
    "I texted Chowder under the table and told him, and he told me to tell Will. So I asked Will if we could talk outside, and I told him, and he said he'd liked me for a while. So we kissed, and then I asked him to be my boyfriend."  
  
    Sierra is grinning full force. "Fuckin' adorable," she says. She doesn't cuss often, so Derek can tell she's genuinely happy. "Since we're talking about this, I actually have someone too."  
  
    "Oh really?"  
  
    "Yeah. Well, we're not together, but there's this girl in my dorm that I'm totally starting to crush on, and I think she might like me too."  
  
    Derek smiles. "That's really awesome, Sierra. I hope things work out."  
  
    Sierra smiles back. "I think they will."

  
♢

  
    Late one Saturday evening, Derek calls Will from the field where he's sitting on a blanket that is frankly too plush to be on the grass and dirt. Whatever. Will answers after three rings with a "hey, babe."  
  
    "Hey cutie," Derek responds. He's one hundred percent sure Will's blushing, because he always blushes when Derek says that.  
  
    "Nerd. What's up?"  
  
    "Are you busy?"  
  
    "Nah, just hanging out at the Haus, why? Where are you?"  
  
    "You know that empty field a couple miles off campus?"  
  
    "Yeah," Will responds, sounding confused.  
  
    "I'm there," Derek says with a grin. "Come meet me."  
  
    "In a field? At dusk? What the fuck, Derek?" Derek can hear the smile in his voice.  
  
    "Don't question it, just hurry up."  
  
    "Should I be worried?"  
  
    "Nah. Wear sweatpants and maybe bring a sweater though."  
  
    "What the fuck, babe? Why?"  
  
    "Stop asking questions!" Derek says with a laugh. "Just come on," he tells Will, dragging out the last syllable.  
  
    In the background, he hears Bitty say, "just go, William!" and he stifles another laugh.  
  
    "Okay! Jeez, alright, I'll be there in a few."  
  
    "Can't wait," Derek says, and then hangs up. He grins to himself and looks around at his handiwork. He set up wooden posts to form an open cube, and then strung blue and white fairy lights around the posts and and across the tops of them to complete the cube. He got the kind of lights that are battery-operated so he didn't have to worry about connecting them to his car's power.  
  
    Inside the cube, Derek set up the big plush blanket, with some fluffy pillows and an extra blanket to lie under. It was warm out, but the wind was a little chilly, so Derek had a thermos full of coffee and a basket full of pie and cookies. It was pretty amazing, if he did say so himself. It honestly turned out better than expected.  
  
    Will gets there in no time, and Derek watches his truck move over bumps and holes in the ground, the tires crushing grass and sticks with soft snaps. He parks beside Derek's car and gets out, and Derek takes in his confused grin with a smile.  
  
    "What the fuck is all this?" Will asks as he walks over. Derek smiles wider.  
  
    "C'mon, take your shoes off and come chill."  
  
    "'Chill'," Will repeats as he kicks off his shoes. He settles down on the blanket and presses a quick kiss to Derek's lips in greeting. "Did you do all this for me?"  
  
    "You said you're not interested in stuffy dinner dates," Derek says, and Will rolls his eyes affectionately. "So I thought cuddling under the stars and eating a bunch of Bitty's baked goods would be better."  
  
    "You're such a sap."  
  
    "Uh-huh, don't pretend you don't love it."  
  
    Will grins and kisses Derek again. "I do."  
  
    Derek wraps his arms around Will and pulls him down onto the blanket with him, and Will cuddles up against Derek's side. "Hey, Orion's totally checking you out."  
  
    Will snickers and smacks Derek lightly in the side. "Shut up, nerd."  
  
    "Make me."  
  
    "I would, but I'm too comfortable to move."  
  
    "That's fair."  
  
    "This is nice."  
  
    "You think so?" Derek smiles.  
  
    "Yeah, babe, I love it."  
  
    "I'm glad."  
  
    Will hooks one of his legs over Derek's and cuddles closer. After a moment of suspended silence, Will says, "I love you."  
  
    Derek breaks into a grin. "Really?"  
  
    "Duh. I wouldn't say it if I didn't feel it, babe. You don't have to say it back, though."  
  
    "I do," Derek says. "I love you too." It feels like the easiest thing he's ever said. The easiest thing he's ever felt, if he's honest.  
  
    Will sits up and grins down at Derek, totally unguarded. "Yeah?"  
  
    "Yeah," Derek says. He wraps an arm around Will's neck and pulls him down until the tips of their noses are touching. "I'm madly in love with you, William Poindexter," he whispers, and then kisses Will softly.  
  
    Will's smile slowly dissolves into the slow press of their lips. Derek pulls Will up until he's lying on top of him, their bodies pressed close and legs slotted together. He leisurely kisses Will's mouth open while one of Will's hands finds its way under Derek's shirt to rest on the warm skin of his stomach.  
  
    Derek runs his tongue over Will's bottom lip before pulling back and dipping his head down to suck lightly below Will's jaw. When he nips at the skin there with his teeth, Will gasps and his fingertips press against Derek's skin. He pulls back after a lingering second to look down at Derek, and Derek can see the want in his blown pupils.  
  
    "Are you _trying_ to turn me on?"  
  
    "That's kinda the goal, yeah. Why, isn't it working?" Derek smirks up at him, and Will rolls his eyes.  
  
    "You know damn well that it's working, but what, we're gonna fuck in the middle of an empty field?"  
  
    "No, of course not," Derek says. "That'd be classless. We're gonna _make love_  in the middle of an empty field. On a very comfy blanket. Under the stars."  
  
    Will rolls his eyes again. "This shit only happens in movies, Derek," he says, but contradicts himself by peppering kisses along Derek's cheek and neck. "How are you a real person?" Will asks against Derek's skin.  
  
    "Someone had to exist to love you the way you deserve," Derek responds without missing a beat. Will pulls back to look at him, cheeks flushed and eyes bright, and Derek thinks he looks beautiful.  
  
    "Jesus Christ."  
  
    "What?"  
  
    "You're incredible," Will says, and leans down to press a chaste kiss to his lips. "Now shut up and do me."  
  
    Derek laughs. "So romantic."  
  
    "Oh, I'm sorry," Will responds, all light-hearted sarcasm. "Be quiet and make love to me."  
  
    "That's more like it," Derek tells him, and then pulls Will down to kiss the breath out of his lungs.

  
♢

  
    The next afternoon, Derek and Will show up to the Haus for brunch with their fingers intertwined, laughing at jokes they've been telling for the whole walk across campus. Derek drops down into the empty chair next to Holster and then pulls Will down onto his lap. Will makes a surprised protest, but then settles back against his chest and pulls Derek's arms around him.  
  
    "I take it last night went well, then?" Bitty asks. Derek looks up at him blankly for a second before he processes the question.  
  
    "Oh, yeah, it was great," he says, a slow grin taking over his face.  
  
    "I don't know how much you had to do with that, Bitty, but thanks," Will says. Nursey stretches to kiss his cheek.  
  
    Bitty grins at them. "Don't thank me, it was pretty much all Nursey. All I did was fess up the baked goods and help him pick light colours."  
  
    Derek sees Holster mouth, 'what happened?' at Ransom, and smothers a laugh.  
  
    "What did I miss?" Chowder asks, looking between Will and Derek with wide eyes.  
  
    "Nursey took me on a stupidly romantic date last night," Will says. "He set up a blanket and lights and stuff out in the middle of that empty field off campus. We sat out there and ate pie and drank coffee and looked at the stars for hours." Will coughs. "Among other things."  
  
    Derek laughs. "Shh, they don't need to know about that."  
  
    "That's _so_  cute and romantic, oh my gosh!" Chowder exclaims.  
  
    "Yeah," Will says. Derek can hear his grin without having to see it. He finds one of Will's hands and laces their fingers together.  
  
    "And Dex told me he loves me," Derek says, unable to keep from grinning at the memory.  
  
    Chowder drops his fork and it clatters on his plate. "Oh. My. God!" He says. "Really?!"  
  
    "Yeah," Will tells him. "The fucking nerd said it back, too." Will turns and presses a soft kiss to Derek's lips, and they both grin, helpless to do anything else.

**Author's Note:**

> Things I have some firsthand knowledge about that I mentioned in this fic:  
> -coding (my dad works online security and works on code constantly, and he's shown me a bit about how it works. I don't really understand it, but I have seen it firsthand.)  
> -literature (like Nursey, English and literature are more my speed than CompSci.)  
> -hockey (fuck the Blackhawks.)  
> -Horseshoe crabs (I'm a slut for aquariums and sea creatures. Once I was at an aquarium and people around the touch tank thought I worked there because they kept asking questions and I had all the answers.)
> 
> Things I have no firsthand knowledge of that I mentioned in this fic:  
> -The New England Aquarium (all of the information about that, I got from Wikipedia and the official aquarium website. If you have been and can correct me on anything, please do.)  
> -college in general (I'm seventeen and have never set foot in a college. I have a couple friends that have been in college but I don't ask questions. I have no idea how it works or what the classes are like. I tried really hard to be vague and descriptive at the same time without getting anything wrong.)
> 
> This was a goddamn adventure, and I really hope you enjoyed it.


End file.
